463
adopted a policy of obstruction and delay.
11.
Finally, after I had delivered Briefs to both Counsel and everything was prepared for a great argument, the Respondents' Solicitors withdrew at the last moment, and the opposition crumbled away, and on the 4th January, 1904, the Supreme Court reversed the decision of the Land Court in each case and disallowed the claims in toto, thus freeing the Government from claims amounting to about half a million dollars.
12.
I should like to state that in my opinion no blame can be attached to the former President and Member of the Land Court (Mr. Pollock and Mr. Gompertz) in this matter, as in both cases they were misled by perjured evidence and forged documents of title.
13.
In preparing for these appeals, I had to go very thoroughly into the Chinese law bearing upon the claims, and thanks to the able and untiring assistance of Mr. Clementi and Mr. Lau Tsz Ping (the expert provided by the Government of Canton), I was able to instruct Counsel on the necessary points.
14.
Although the Crown succeeded in both cases, there is no prospect of recovering any costs from the Respondents, as they are either absent from the Colony or men of straw who were financed (up to a certain point) by land speculators. I should mention, however, that I recovered a sum of $566.55 in respect of a side issue, of which $200, representing Counsel's fees, I paid into the Treasury and $248.05, Solicitor's costs, I retained; these sums are excluded from the amounts quoted below.
15.
I cannot easily estimate the fees to which I should have been entitled to charge a private client in connection with my work from April till July in respect of the compensation